Have you taken Valerian root to help you sleep? Does it work?!
Question: There are over 200 species of Valeriana growing around the world, but the one most commonly referred to is the species Valeriana officinalis.
Valerian seems to be quite safe, and can be used as a tea, or in capsules as a regular sleep-aid. Valerian extracts are sometimes standardized and very often mixed with other botanicals such as hops or passion flower to enhance the effects of the valerian root extract. Valerian products have a very distinctive, unpleasant odor.
Valerian root has long been used for medicinal purposes. The Greek physician Galen recommended valerian for insomnia in the second century A.D., and after falling out of common use for some time it became popular again from the sixteenth century on as a sedative, with wide usage in Europe and the United States. Until 1950, the U.S. National Formulary listed valerian as a sleep aid and antianxiety treatment. However, it fell out of favor once more, as U.S. medical doctors abandoned herbs as a form of treatment.
Germany's Commission E monograph lists valerian as useful for "restlessness and nervous disturbance of sleep." Today, valerian is available over the counter and is widely used as a remedy for insomnia in Germany, Belgium, France, Switzerland, and Italy.
Valerian root has an unpleasant smell, reminiscent of a pair of rotten socks and cats love the smell, so many people prefer the (odor-free) capsules to liquid remedies. An average dose is 100 to 200mg of valerian extract standardized to contain 0.8 to 1.0% valerenic acid, a compound that occurs in the root.
Valerian is considered generally somewhat more effective in treating insomnia than the herbs passionflower and hops but less effective than pharmaceutical sleeping pills such as the benzodiazepines.
It is very effective in promoting sleep. Valerian helps to relax mind and body and provide temporary relief from anxiety and calms nervous stomach.
Answers: There are over 200 species of Valeriana growing around the world, but the one most commonly referred to is the species Valeriana officinalis.
Valerian seems to be quite safe, and can be used as a tea, or in capsules as a regular sleep-aid. Valerian extracts are sometimes standardized and very often mixed with other botanicals such as hops or passion flower to enhance the effects of the valerian root extract. Valerian products have a very distinctive, unpleasant odor.
Valerian root has long been used for medicinal purposes. The Greek physician Galen recommended valerian for insomnia in the second century A.D., and after falling out of common use for some time it became popular again from the sixteenth century on as a sedative, with wide usage in Europe and the United States. Until 1950, the U.S. National Formulary listed valerian as a sleep aid and antianxiety treatment. However, it fell out of favor once more, as U.S. medical doctors abandoned herbs as a form of treatment.
Germany's Commission E monograph lists valerian as useful for "restlessness and nervous disturbance of sleep." Today, valerian is available over the counter and is widely used as a remedy for insomnia in Germany, Belgium, France, Switzerland, and Italy.
Valerian root has an unpleasant smell, reminiscent of a pair of rotten socks and cats love the smell, so many people prefer the (odor-free) capsules to liquid remedies. An average dose is 100 to 200mg of valerian extract standardized to contain 0.8 to 1.0% valerenic acid, a compound that occurs in the root.
Valerian is considered generally somewhat more effective in treating insomnia than the herbs passionflower and hops but less effective than pharmaceutical sleeping pills such as the benzodiazepines.
It is very effective in promoting sleep. Valerian helps to relax mind and body and provide temporary relief from anxiety and calms nervous stomach.
yea- but it STINKS! i never knew it had a purpose other than for my brother to run me out of a room... but from what I've heard it does work- not as good as tylenol PM or anything but...
I have taken it and yes, It does stink. Beware of the valerian burps. It also will help you get to sleep.
Other things to try would be California Poppy extract, Lady's Slipper, and melatonin. All of those have worked for me in the past.
Alex
Yes it works, it makes you burp nasty though...
Valerian may take a while to work, kava kava has worked really well for me as a natural sleep aid.
I have never taken Valerian Root. I usually take Melatonin. It usually helps me sleep.
It seems to help..also great w meditation that naturally relaxes the mind
Melatonin is the answer. Naturally produced by the body. It is theorized that as one ages they produce less and that is why older people have weird sleep cycles. Melatonin is cheap and can be bought at any vitamin store. Try it and you will like it.